TheInsanity1234 wrote:When you say you wonder if I really were doing 30 mph, do you mean to suggest you think I may have been travelling faster?

No, I thought it was probable that you were actually going more slowly. If you really were doing 30, I'd suggest it was inappropriate in those particular circumstances (traffic lights ahead, vehicle manoeuvring to your nearside, dark, built-up area with potential for pedestrians (especially near junctions), driving tired, etc. etc. ...), but hey, you know that!

TheInsanity1234 wrote:When you say you wonder if I really were doing 30 mph, do you mean to suggest you think I may have been travelling faster?

No, I thought it was probable that you were actually going more slowly. If you really were doing 30, I'd suggest it was inappropriate in those particular circumstances (traffic lights ahead, vehicle manoeuvring to your nearside, dark, built-up area with potential for pedestrians (especially near junctions), driving tired, etc. etc. ...), but hey, you know that!

Ah I understand what you mean. I said 30 as a number because that was the last number I remember before the fixation on the parked car, but I could very well have subconsciously slowed down. Either that, or I could have maintained speed. I'm not entirely sure what happened, except for what I detailed a post or two ago. I remember making all the important observations, but then just failed to actually continue making observations after I fixtated on the parked car with it's indicator.

Commentary. Keep it simple. Traffic light, side road, bend sign indicator. start with just one or two words as prompts. You can build up from there.

I was out on the bike with one of the BiBs last year he did commentary over the radio. the amount of detail he put in was overwhelming,It was at the speed of a horse rate commentary but in a calm voice. But then you have to remember he is practicing this for 8 hours a day or more.

As for the accident its the first of hopefully not too many chalk it up to experience learn from it and move on. At least it was only metal and plastic that got bent not people vehicle are much easier to repair

Sorry to hear about the prang. Annoying and infuriating as it is, you will learn from it.

Relying on coffee to keep you awake and going without food is not a good idea, see Don Palmers website. He gives advice about nutrition for driving.Although the website is probably more about track driving, there is a comprehensive section on road driving.

It might focus the mind, but sleep can't be 'denied' - it's proven that the only cure is sleep.

Perhaps a key lesson to take away is self awareness - and taking action on what you notice. In this case, stop for a catnap. Coffee, winding the window down, loud music . . . No.

You may have heard the FLOWER vehicle check prompt list. Add the 'Y' too: 'you?' How do you feel before you start off, how are you facing during the journey, etc?

Level of awareness - are you tired?Health - colds,illness, injury?Warm, cold, etc can affect you.Have you had a 'bad day', arguments, and are you tired - whether from a long day, mental or physical work, or slept badly?

I know it's not exactly a good idea but these days it's the only thing keeping me awake! My sleeping pattern is awful lately and so I 'cure' the tiredness by drinking copious amountsof coffee which result in a caffiene dependency.

I am trying to cut down but it's jolly easy to just reach for the cafetiere and make myself another strong cup of coffee lol

Considering it was a combination of long day and lack of coffee that resulted in the crash, I have made more of an effort to cut down.

It doesn't particularly help that I'm going through a stressful time in my life. I lost my grandmother in January, my father was made redundant in December, I'm about to find out how I did in my january examinations, so there's the stress of the unknown there, and to top it all off, my parents are upping sticks and moving house, but the market is slow at the moment so we're all quite uncertain about our futures.

All of those things have contributed to a noticable decline in my quality of observation and driving, and this prang was the wake up call I needed to start figuring out how to put all my emotion to one side and just focus on the task in hand!

Might this be caused, in part, by the volume of coffee? Normally I don't have coffee after midday, drinking to water instead.

I stopped drinking coffee after midday a few years ago, and noticed a significant improvement in ease of getting to sleep. I'll still drink lots of decaf (tea or coffee), which I know isn't completely caffeine free, but the amount is negligible. Last year I gave up caffeine completely - as I travel long haul for work 4 or 5 times a year, I often suffered headaches when I hadn't had my "morning" coffee intake (~8am, UK time). It took about 3 weeks to stop completely, as I needed to reduce my intake gradually to prevent withdrawal headaches. Now I rarely get headaches when travelling, and I can use caffeinated coffee to help me adjust to whichever timezone I'm in with breakfast. If it's only for a few days (I'm very rarely away for more than a week at a time), I don't have any issue stopping when I get back.